The opportunity to do just that is now upon the former Angelo State football player and graduate assistant coach as Warren is one of four finalists for the vacant ASU head coaching position. He talked to the media Sunday.

“It is my alma mater,” Warren said. “I played here. I got my coaching start here and I am excited about the opportunity to maybe come back here and be a part of something special, the opportunity to bring this football (program) back to some national prominence the way it used to be. I am excited about that. I think this is a great opportunity and I am looking forward to it.”

Neiswander Named MVP of 2010 All-American Bowl - Angelo State Sports Information
MINNEAPOLIS – Sacked three times on his first two drives before being rotated out for another pair of quarterbacks, Josh Neiswander could only sit and watch as his Stripes team fell behind the Stars team, 10-0, in the first half of the All-American Bowl at the Nagurski Practice Facility Saturday afternoon. When his turn came around for the second time in the middle of the third quarter Neiswander literally took the game over by calling his own plays – with his head coach Tim Hawkins’ permission – and turned in an MVP effort while leading the Stripes to a 30-10 win.

Neiswander was named the game’s top player after taking control and leading a game-tying drive in the third quarter – part of 30 unanswered points from the Stripes squad. Garrett Tidwell was named the Stripes offensive MVP after he and Neiswander carved through the defense, and Angelo State fullback John Norcott also contributed to the win. Neiswander turned the game around when he asked his head coach if he could call the shots.

“I started calling my own plays and we started dominating that team,” Neiswander said. “I was running the Angelo State offense, but I had to put it in the terminology that we’ve been working on all week. I got sacked three or four times on our first couple of drives and when my turn came up again I said, ‘Hey, let me take care of this one.’ We put together an 8-10 play drive with me calling our plays from ASU. I was moving Garrett around and just peppered the ball into him a lot.”

Official stats were not available Saturday night, but Neiswander thinks he completed 12-of-15 passes in the game, including a touchdown to cap the third quarter drive and tie the contest at 10-10. From there, the Stripes team kept rolling and piled up 27 second half points en route to the victory. Neiswander was pleasantly surprised when he asked Hawkins for the keys to the offense.

“He said go for it. If you’ve got it, then do it,” Neiswander said. “I had a headset in my helmet and he was talking to me from the sidelines – it was pretty cool. I started calling our stuff and we just wrecked shop on them. It was really nice that our coaches had enough confidence in me – it shows a lot of respect. He knew what he was doing, but he knew what I was talking about and knew that I have been coached really well.”

Neiswander was quick to point out that even as a quarterback and offensive coordinator at the same time, he dialed up a run play during the drive in the third quarter.

“We had like 10 passes on that drive and on the fifth play I called a run,” Neiswander said with a laugh. “I was proud of myself for making that one run call.”

Neiswander and Tidwell didn’t have much opportunity to play pitch and catch during the 2010 season as Tidwell served almost exclusively as a kick and punt returner en route to earning Daktronics First Team All-America honors, but the duo looked comfortable together when the game was on the line.

“All the guys were like man, you guy have such a good connection, but I only threw five passes to Garrett all season,” Neiswander said. “He’s such a good athlete and a gamer. He knows how to run routes – he was a quarterback in high school – and finds openings in the zone. He’s a scrappy guy who makes things happen.”

Tidwell didn’t have a touchdown in the game, but sealed the end with a block on a 60-yard touchdown run by the Stripes in the second half. Norcott was the only fullback on the team and was on the field for most of the game, even taking a few snaps at tight end.

---------------------------------------------------

MSU at D.L. Ligon a winning formula - Nick Gholson, Times Record News
A few weeks back, a friend told me he thought that instead of spending $25 million to renovate D.L. Ligon Coliseum, the school should have blown up the old building and built a new one across the street.

Blow up the Dome and the 40 years of magic and memories?

To me that would be about as stupid as turning Coyote Canyon into a bus barn.

“I just hope I am dead and gone if that ever happens,” I told my buddy.

A&M-Commerce to test MSU streak - Nick Gholson, Times Record News
Texas A&M-Commerce looks to be a real threat to Midwestern State’s 33-game home win streak.

The 8 p.m. nightcap today in a Lone Star Conference crossover doubleheader at D.L. Ligon Coliseum matches the Lions’ second-best scoring offense in the league against MSU’s second-best scoring defense.

Commerce (7-2) averages 87.2 points per game.

The Mustangs, 8-1 and riding an eight-game win streak, allow just 57.6 points per game.

“They really score and play fast,” Midwestern coach Grant McCasland. “They don’t have a true post player, so they play guys who are undersized a little bit, but they are athletic and can run. They are fast and have no problem getting up and down the floor.

“They return a veteran guard corps. Their forwards are a couple of transfers who are playing great and leading them in rebounding and scoring down on the block.”

MSU women look to even crossover record - J. Scott Russell, Times Record News
The Texas A&M-Commerce women’s basketball team picked up its first win of the season last week when it slipped past Eastern New Mexico in a Lone Star Conference crossover game.

The Midwestern State Mustangs will be trying to keep them from getting used to that feeling as well as evening their record in crossover contests when the two teams hit the floor today in D.L. Ligon Coliseum.

Tipoff for the women’s-men’s doubleheader is scheduled for 6 p.m., with the men’s game to follow.

MSU also is coming off a win as it beat Texas Woman’s University on Saturday to improve to 3-5 on the season. The Lions have had a week off since their 64-63 win over the Zias.

“They are very athletic and they like to run,” MSU coach Noel Johnson said of the Lions. “They have two kids that will drive right by you. So we’re going to have to defend the drive and do a much better job blocking out. They knocked off Eastern New Mexico — which is a pretty organized team.

“We have to have some consistency.”

Buffs put winning streak on line tonight at home - Lance Lahnert, Amarillo Globe News
In order for West Texas A&M to produce the third best start in men's basketball school history since 1920-21, it will have to win its third game over a six-day span.

The Buffs will be looking to open their season 11-0 when they host the Northeastern State (Okla.) State RiverHawks at 8 p.m. today in a Lone Star Conference crossover game in the First United Bank Center.

However, in order to accomplish the rare feat, the Buffs will need to handle RiverHawks team riding a small wave of momentum from two straight wins.

-------------------------------------------------------------McMurry aims to take step up to Division II - Sam Waller, Abilene Reporter News
An idea that has been floating around the McMurry athletic department for a while was given the go-ahead Friday, when the university’s board of trustees unanimously voted to approve an application for membership in NCAA Division II.

Now comes the process of making it happen.

Athletic director Ron Holmes said Saturday before the McMurry-SMU basketball game the proposal of changing divisions and granting athletic scholarships has been discussed among coaches for several years, but has only been seriously studied over the past year.

He said a desire to improve the university both academically and athletically was the driving force behind the decision to formally pursue such a move.

“You always try to better yourself and that’s what we want to do,” Holmes said. “You try to better yourself academically first, then athletically second. That was the impetus, to find a way to make things better.”

Holmes said one immediate benefit for the school would be better retention of student-athletes, which becomes magnified on a campus where more than 30 percent of the student body participates in at least one varsity sport.

“We’ve longed to find ways to make it where kids would come to McMurry and stay four years,” he said. “The retention was something we wanted to improve. Anyone’s retention rate could always be improved. We started with retention and that will be a huge positive. We will improve our retention.”

While the process of McMurry moving to Division II is getting started, the proposal is being received favorably within the university community.

McMurry, a charter member of the American Southwest Conference, which includes crosstown rival Hardin-Simmons, has competed in NCAA Division III since the 1996-97 school year. In an e-mailed press release, Russell said McMurry intends to remain in both the ASC and Division III until the guidelines for transition are met bases on the NCAA timeline and requirements for reclassification.